The Secret History of Xi Shi: Dust-Stained

Fan Li still remembered the white figure of Xi Shi leaping from the city wall, like a blade piercing his heart. But this time, he was utterly calm.

He had long known that Gou Jian was a man who could share hardship but not prosperity. He traveled the world alone, boating across the Five Lakes under the name Chiyi Zipi, doing business now and then and giving his wealth away along the way.

He had settled by Lake Tai. Whenever he went boating, memories would come back to him. Perhaps he'd had too much to drink, because suddenly Fuchai was sitting in front of him. One sat at the bow, the other at the stern, no more than an arm's length apart. He held up his wine cup, sniffed it, then raised it toward the phantom of Fuchai, as if inviting him to drink together.

"I suppose we only drank together twice. Once, when I came to ask you for peace as an envoy. The second time, I knew you were going to your death, yet I couldn't stop you. But that wine was the most satisfying drink of my life."

He'd thought Xi Shi was the one he couldn't forget. But now, who was it that had become the nightmare binding his heart?

People only come to understand the past when they grow old.

He couldn't even tell what he felt. He drained his cup and fell into a drunken sleep. When he woke, Fuchai was demanding to know why he hadn't killed him.

Had he actually returned to the fourteenth year of Duke Ding of Lu's reign?

Fanfic based on The Secret History of Xi Shi, pairing Fuchai/Fan Li. Just writing for my own amusement, couldn't help myself. Please don't nitpick the history QWQ

Theme: Many things are beyond our control, but we should cherish the people and things we mustn't let slip away again.